2012 Are you encouraged or discouraged? What I will be doing to ensure success?

Over the last few months it has been pretty difficult not to have noticed the bleak economic prospect overshadowing Europe. In the comfort of my home during Christmas it seemed difficult to imagine the impact  the economic outlook could have on a small business such as mine.  Still, it got me thinking about how best to mix optimism with a dose of realism during 2012.

So pure and simple, 2012 has got to be the year for making as much money as possible. Not the turnover, not the number of clients I can boast about but the cash in my pocket at the end of each month and the end of the year!

In the early days of my business I was shown how to set a 30 day challenge focusing on making as much profit as possible. The 30 day challenge involved spending ½ – 1 hour at the beginning of each month planning what the overall outcome was going to be and how to ensure it was achieved for that month.  Then 10 minutes were spent at the beginning of each week planning what that week would look like and whether there were any changes to the overall plan. As time went on it became clear that some months of the year looked different, that sometimes I had been unrealistic with what I could feasibly achieve as well as the income generated. There were no rules as to how I was to structure the 30 days.  I could plan from 2am in the morning or start at noon. Within the 30 day challenge I had;

A focus on sales;
a) A networking target.  How many potential customers I needed to meet, where, when and of what calibre. Once you know who you want to get in front of finding where to find those contacts was part of my first week of activity. Building travel time into the 30 day plan was eye opening to say the least and prompted more “close to home” lead generation. Even though the leads might not have led to sales it was another opportunity to build the business brand.
b) Processing the information gathered from the sales leads I had generated in the form of sales proposals or further marketing activities to attract those leads to buy from me. This was usually done within 12 hours of making the contact.
c) New client meetings and an opportunity to pitch my services. d) Making myself look good both professionally as well as from a knowledge perspective.  Taking time to become the expert in my profession was a valuable use of my time.

A focus on delivery;
a) Fulfilling the sales promises based on the figure quoted.
b) Even if you are dedicated to sales full time ensuring that an appropriate handover to the delivery team may take up time.
c) As a one man band in those days balancing the sales leads vs delivery was a tricky balance to get right leading to an interesting business cycle highlighting some months heavily focused on sales and others on delivering those sales.

A focus on personal development.  This could take the form of physical exercise and time out, attending conferences or training as well as time out or later starts in the day.

I’m drafting my traditional new year 30 day plan as we speak based on a variety of new circumstances! I’ve added a new baby to the mix as well as an enhanced role as the British Polish Chamber of Commerce contact in the UK which takes me and the business to Poland. Before I complete my 30 day plan I will also implement the following areas of advice that have been given to me.

1. Increase my “Mental toughness” This was a phrase shared with me by a good friend of mine at the end of last year.  We’re going to be building mental toughness into the Icon Women Link n Learn programme of activity over the coming year.  We all have areas of weakness that need work! For me running a business requires emotional, physical as well as mental resilience. As an entrepreneur I have so often pushed myself to the limit and found myself in a variety of tough situations.  We can all relate to the phrase “burn out” and so often have lacked the necessary balance needed to counter those challenging business situations.  Building mental toughness to avoid those pitfalls is crucial  – especially when keeping focused on the end goal of making money. If we don’t have mental toughness we can often lose sight of the business goal. Build your toolkit of activities that enhance your mental toughness.
2. Assess the starting position for 2012?  Checking how 2011 went as well as learning from the mistakes made – very important. Try not to dwell too much on the negatives but ensure you are honest enough to learn from them to move forward.  The questions I have asked are; does my client base look different or the same?  Are they going to want to spend more or less with me this year? What product can be developed even further? Can I introduce something new?  What can I abandon and what do I definitely need to stop doing?
3. Trying something new? Know what you need to quit in order to succeed. Seth Godin in his book “The Dip”  talks about knowing when to quit. Rather than seeing it as failure see it as a fast step to trying something new. “Winners quit all the time. They quit the right stuff at the right time. Most people quit. They just don’t quit successfully…Extraordinary benefits accrue to the tiny minority of people who are able to quit early and refocus their efforts on something new.” If you’re not achieving what you set out to do or are not making money why do it?
4. Reducing my overheads even more? Can you make cost savings that add to your bottom line? Have you taken a look at all your outgoings in great detail to assess what you are paying too much for and furthermore whether you need it in the first place? We’ve taken the bold step of downsizing offices, upgrading all of our equipment so that we can work virtually if need be as we travel, and relying more on outsourcing activity to a network of associates. This gives me more time to focus on doing what I love to do.
5. How much time do I realistically have? Seems a little bit of an odd question… It wasn’t until the arrival of a baby that I started assessing how much time I physically have to focus on money making activity. When the pressure is on, finding an extra 3 hours to complete a 7 hour day is of utmost importance.  It led me to ask the question WHAT THE HECK WAS I DOING BEFORE? When you are your own boss you can get caught up in the romance of running a business and forget that there are only have 24 hours in the day. Having a brand, outgoings, public image and a turnover you check once a year are all deceptive especially if you do not know what your bottom line profit is each month. Accounting for every hour working on the business to ensure that time is rewarded by cash is a 2012 aim.  In addition knowing the tasks I have ahead of me is imperative! This forms the foundation of then assessing which activities will contribute heavily to that money making goal and which activities are a complete waste of my time!
6. Enjoy where I am at on the way to where I am going. There are going to be times in your professional career where you just cannot physically do everything based on other priorities surrounding you. I used to think it was about compromising on ambition but have learnt that its more about good planning in order to be able to fully enjoy where you are at on the way to where you are going. Realising that the business is meant to support me fulfil personal, professional as well as lifestyle ambitions rather than dominate or control every waking hour has led to making choices about reducing the number of hours I spend working. Being selective about the contracts and contacts you want is important and getting yourself into these positions should be a priority with time.

Why not open a 30 day plan of activity for 2012 and let us know how you intend to do things differently in 2012.